AGU Fall Meeting in San Francisco: Press conference schedule now live

2 December 2019


San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge.

San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge.


AGU press contact:

Lauren Lipuma
+1 (202) 777-7396
[email protected]


WASHINGTON—The press conference schedule for Fall Meeting 2019 is now available in the Fall Meeting Media Center. Fall Meeting is the largest worldwide conference in the Earth and space sciences. This year, the meeting runs from Monday through Friday, 9-13 December, at the Moscone Center, 747 Howard St., San Francisco, California.

Online press registration is open and will remain open throughout the meeting. To register, visit the Fall Meeting Media Center and click on the “Register Now” button. For eligibility information, please visit the Press Registration Eligibility Requirements page.

Visit the Fall Meeting Media Center or read our previous media advisories for information on press registration, attending the press field trip, searching the scientific program, tips for covering the meeting, and U.S. visa regulations for international attendees.

Note: Information regarding onsite logistics, including the locations of press registration, the press room, poster hall, oral session rooms and more will be included in an advisory later this week.

Included in this advisory:

  1. Press conference schedule
  2. Live stream press conferences
  3. New this year: Media roundtables
  4. Keynote lectures and potentially newsworthy sessions
  5. AGU GO
  6. Press networking and social events

1. Press conference schedule

AGU’s public information office has planned a series of press conferences to help reporters cover new developments in the Earth and space sciences. The Fall Meeting 2019 press conference schedule is listed below, posted online in the Fall Meeting Media Center, and available for download here. Additional information about the press conferences, including speakers, descriptions, and associated presentations, is listed on the full schedule on the Fall Meeting Media Center.

AGU also plans to send out press releases highlighting new research results presented at the meeting. Slides and other materials from press conferences will be available in the Online Newsroom.

Note: The press conference schedule is subject to change before or during Fall Meeting. Press conferences may be added or dropped; their titles, emphases or participants may change. Updates, changes and additions to the press events schedule will be posted to the Fall Meeting Media Center.

Monday, 9 December
9:00 a.m. – The importance and vulnerability of the world’s water towers
11:00 a.m. – Explaining extreme events of 2018 from a climate perspective
1:30 p.m. – Ice in motion: Decades of satellite images illuminate change
2:30 p.m. – Media Availability: Updates to AGU’s climate change and data position statements
3:30 p.m. – Geoscience Grab Bag 1: Sailing rocks, seafloor pockmarks, and atomic bombs

Tuesday, 10 December
8:00 a.m. – Press workshop: A year on the ice: MOSAiC at three months
9:00 a.m. – Press workshop: Climate change and El Niño: Does global warming matter for the climate of the tropics?
10:00 a.m. – Et tu Etna? New insights on classic eruptions of Etna, Vesuvius, and Santorini
11:00 a.m. – Arctic Report Card 2019
1:30 p.m. – What controlled the rise of oxygen on Earth?
2:30 p.m. – Postcards from the edge of space: New images, new phenomena, and new insights
3:30 p.m. – Geoscience Grab Bag 2: Mountain limits and earthquake teleconnections

Wednesday, 11 December
9:00 a.m. – Geoscience Grab Bag 3: Rock arches, alien rain, and kidney stones
10:00 a.m. – New science from NASA’s Parker Solar Probe mission
11:00 a.m. – Press workshop: Get ready to face the Sun with Solar Orbiter
1:30 p.m. – Another giant polar cyclone discovered: Juno science results since jumping Jupiter’s shadow
2:30 p.m. – Microplastics in unexpected places

Thursday, 12 December
9:00 a.m. – Geoscience Grab Bag 4: Lunar dust, Congo fish, illegal fishing, and collapsing tunnels
11:00 a.m. – X marks the spot: NASA’s OSIRIS-REx sample collection site announcement
2:30 p.m. – Media availability: Recent fires in the Amazon, California and around the globe

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2. Live stream press conferences

Fall Meeting press conferences will be streamed live on the AGU press events webpage. Reporters can visit this site throughout the meeting to watch press conferences in real time and ask questions via an online chat. For more information and instructions, visit the Fall Meeting Media Center. Press conference recordings will be archived on AGU’s YouTube channel.

3. New this year: Media roundtables

This year, in addition to press conferences, AGU will offer a series of media roundtables to bring experts together with reporters in an informal, conversational setting. Roundtables provide background information about an upcoming project or ongoing area of research rather than present breaking news. Roundtables are designed to feel like a comfortable chat around the table, encouraging reporters to ask questions at any time. The 45-minute roundtable sessions will meet at midmorning or midafternoon at a reserved table in the press room.

The Fall Meeting 2019 roundtable schedule is listed below, posted online in the Fall Meeting Media Center, and available for download here. Media roundtables are for onsite press only; they will not be live streamed or recorded. Additional information about the media roundtables, including speakers, descriptions, and associated presentations, is listed on the full schedule on the Fall Meeting Media Center.

Tuesday, 10 December
9:00 a.m. – Enhanced geothermal systems R&D: Harnessing an untapped source of renewable electricity
10:00 a.m. – Two rovers on Mars again
2:00 p.m. – Five new NASA science flight campaigns for 2020

Wednesday, 11 December
2:00 p.m. – What can Antarctica’s past tell us about its future?
3:00 p.m. – A look ahead with AGU journal editors (Round 1)

Thursday, 12 December
10:00 a.m. – Is desalination the answer to our water woes?
3:00 p.m. – A look ahead with AGU journal editors (Round 2)

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4. Keynote lectures and potentially newsworthy sessions

Keynotes
Fall Meeting Keynote Lectures cover different and exciting topics applicable across all fields of Earth and space science. All Keynote Lectures will take place in Moscone North, Hall E, on the lower level.

  • Astronaut Mae C. Jemison will deliver the Presidential Forum Lecture on Monday, 9 December from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m.
  • Astronomer Brent Tully will deliver the Frontiers of Geophysics Lecture on Tuesday, 10 December from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m.
  • Former California Governor Jerry Brown will join a panel of scientists led by AGU President and glaciologist Robin Bell in a discussion on Wednesday, 11 December, from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. Governor Brown and the panelists will discuss the science and politics of climate change and what needs to be done to protect Earth’s climate for the future.
  • Kelvin Droegemeier will deliver the Fall Meeting Agency Lecture on Thursday, 12 December from 12:30 – 1:30 p.m.

AGU Media Tip Sheets
AGU’s Media Tip Sheets contain lists of potentially newsworthy research presentations selected by AGU’s public information team. Tip sheets are organized by date and by topic.

Suggested itineraries
AGU has put together several suggested itineraries highlighting sessions around hot topics, including Ethics, Diversity and Inclusion; GeoHealth; Community Science; Science Communication; and picks by AGU Council members and AGU journal editors. Please check back closer to the meeting as more itineraries become available.

Centennial Central
AGU’s Centennial year will culminate at the 2019 Fall Meeting. Centennial Central will feature discussions and activities around the future of science, including special scientific sessions featuring emerging and well-known scientists. Each day will focus on a different area of Earth and space science.

Union sessions, town halls and tutorial talks
AGU Fall Meeting Union sessions focus on multidisciplinary topics with a broad interest to the scientific community. Town Halls offer an opportunity for government agencies, academic programs, special projects, and other focused interest groups to gather input from the broader AGU Community. Tutorial Talks provide and expert review and synthesis of multiple results from a number of researchers so that the audience can gain a current understanding of the topic.

World Climate Research Programme climate science week
The World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) is celebrating 40 years of international climate science. To mark this milestone, the WCRP Climate Science Week will be held as part of the Fall Meeting. The WCRP Climate Science Week will include a 40th Anniversary Symposium (additional registration required), Science Sessions, Town Halls, and a Union Session.

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5. AGU GO

AGU GO will deliver three days of live programming focused on climate science, plus exclusive presenter interviews and virtual networking opportunities. All live-streamed sessions will be recorded and available for viewing after the meeting, along with additional climate science content recorded during Fall Meeting. Click here for a list of sessions being streamed live and for more information. A full list of sessions being recorded can be found here.

6. Networking and social events

Tuesday, 10 December
Breakfast with AGU leadership
Meet and mingle with AGU President Robin Bell, President-Elect Susan Lozier, and CEO/Executive Director Chris McEntee over breakfast on Tuesday morning in the press room.
When: Tuesday, 10 December, 8:15 – 8:45 a.m.
Where: Press room

Journalism awards reception
Join your press colleagues to honor and celebrate AGU’s most recent journalism award winners during an informal reception on Tuesday evening in the press room.
When: Tuesday, 10 December, 5:00 – 6:30 p.m.
Where: Press room

Wednesday, 11 December
Press Field Trip: Science at Sea with Research Vessel Sally Ride
Take a tour of America’s newest and most technologically advanced oceanographic research vessel, the Research Vessel (R/V) Sally Ride.
When: Wednesday, 11 December, 9:00 – 10:00 a.m.
Where: Exploratorium, The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94111
Cost: Free
Register: Register here.

Northern California Science Writers Association Holiday Party
NCSWA cordially invites AGU press registrants to attend its annual holiday dinner. Join scores of Bay Area journalists and communicators for a fascinating AGU-themed talk, great Mexican food, science-related door prizes, and camaraderie.
When: Wednesday, 11 December, 6:00 – 10:00 p.m.
Where: Tres SF, 130 Townsend St. (at 2nd St.), San Francisco, CA 94107
Cost: $26 for NCSWA members, $45 for nonmembers.
Register and more information: http://www.ncswa.org/event-3627577
Registration deadline: Friday, 6 December

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Founded in 1919, AGU is a not-for-profit scientific society dedicated to advancing Earth and space science for the benefit of humanity. We support 60,000 members, who reside in 135 countries, as well as our broader community, through high-quality scholarly publications, dynamic meetings, our dedication to science policy and science communications, and our commitment to building a diverse and inclusive workforce, as well as many other innovative programs. AGU is home to the award-winning news publication Eos, the Thriving Earth Exchange, where scientists and community leaders work together to tackle local issues, and a headquarters building that represents Washington, D.C.’s first net zero energy commercial renovation. We are celebrating our Centennial in 2019. #AGU100

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Additional AGU press contacts:

Nanci Bompey
+1 (202) 777-7524
[email protected]

Liza Lester
+1 (202) 777-7494
[email protected]